The invention relates to a system consisting of a magnetic-tape-cassette apparatus, comprising a deck and a loading mechanism for magnetic-tape cassettes, and of a magnetic-tape cassette provided with recesses which are each engageable with one coupling member of the loading mechanism to perform further loading and unloading functions.
Such a system comprising a magnetic-tape-cassette apparatus and a magnetic-tape cassette which cooperate functionally with each other is known from German Patent P 37 19 890.04, which corresponds to U.S. Pat. No. 4,924,336. The loading mechanism of this system is described in German Patent P 39 04 483.1, which corresponds to U.S. application Ser. No. 480,427 filed Feb. 15, 1990 of Karl Klos-Hein et al. In said mechanism a cassette holder can be lowered vertically from an ejection plane into a playing plane. The cassette holder has been constructed to play analog magnetic-tape cassettes comprising two tape reels which are engaged by winding spindles of the deck when the cassette is inside the apparatus. The magnetic tape is moved longitudinally past a stationary magnetic head, which is pressed against the tape. There is provided a coupling member which is engageable in the first reel-spindle hole, viewed in the direction of insertion, when a cassette is inserted by hand. After a pull-in motor has been started this coupling member pulls the magnetic-tape cassette further inward into the play position.
Recently digitally recorded magnetic-tape cassettes have become available, in which the magnetic tape is scanned by a rotating magnetic head. The dimensions of these digitally recorded cassettes differ so much from the analog recorded cassettes that a completely different deck is needed for these digital cassettes.